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Arrests after Pakistan court blast

Police detain 36 people after a bomb rips through a courtroom in Quetta.

18 Feb 2007 09:30 GMT

Pakistani officials examine the site outside the court [Reuters]

The court is near to a police station and an office that issues driving licences.

It was not clear who was behind the blast.

Taliban suspected

Quetta is the capital of Baluchistan province which has seen ongoing unrest. Residents of the province have been demanding a greater share of wealth from their natural resources.

Lawyers and officials surround wounded colleagues at a hospital [Reuters]

There has been a spate of suicide attacks in Pakistan that intelligence officials have linked to groups operating from tribal areas, seen as supporting the Taliban and its battle against Nato forces in Afghanistan.

Local authorites also suspect that pro-Taliban militants are targeting sensitive sites to undermine Pakistan's support of the US and its so-called "War on Terror".

The attacks followed a Pakistan army air strike on a base in Waziristan in mid-January.

Pakistan has been under mounting pressure from the US and Afghanistan to tackle Taliban sanctuaries on its territory.

Taliban leaders are widely believed to be operating from in and around Quetta, though Pakistan consistently denies their presence.